5/15/2019

IRAN/IRAQ/MILITARY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/WAR: “In the Trump administration’s recent bellicose talk about Iran, Iraqis hear eerie echoes of the months just before the American invasion of Iraq. Iraqi officials, wary of another war on their land, say they have warned armed groups tied to Iran to refrain from taking any action that could provoke American retaliation…In the past two weeks, the Trump administration has said, repeatedly and publicly, that Iran and Arab Shiite militias aligned with it were planning to strike American troops in the region, and that the threat had increased recently. In response, the administration dispatched an aircraft carrier, long-range bombers and an antimissile battery to the Persian Gulf and updated plans for a war with Iran. On Wednesday [5-15-19], the State Department ordered a number of its ‘nonemergency’ personnel in Iraq to leave the country. The United States has not revealed any evidence supporting its assessment of an increased threat, though on Wednesday officials described what they said were photos of missiles being loaded onto Iranian boats. Allies of the United States have said that while Iran and its confederates may pose a danger, it is unclear whether there is a serious threat against American forces.”

Alissa J. Rubin, “Iraq, Fearing Another U.S. War, Warns Militias Against Provocation,” The New York Times online, May 15, 2019